04/09/13: Mavericks chat with SportsDay beat writer Eddie Sefko

Eddie Sefko joins us at 11 a.m. Tuesday, but ask your questions now and he will have them when he arrives. Thanks for your readership!

by SportsDayDFW4/8/2013 11:51:09 PM

Greetings everybody. Mavericks have been on a 50-win pace the last 41 games, and still they are not going to make the playoffs. Shows you just how important those games in November and December are, doesn't it? Anyway, time to talk about it. Fire away with those questions.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 3:58:19 PM

Assuming over the next few years the Mavs can't land a superstar to compliment Dirk, what's the next strategy? If we build a roster of 9 deep good players is that enough to compete in the west?

by Odie4/9/2013 3:58:31 PM

Maybe, if they're nine really good and really unselfish players. Denver has it figured out in that regard. They hit a nice double with Ty Lawson in the middle of the first round a couple years ago and maximized the Carmelo chip when they had the chance. Terrible break for Gallinari with the ACL. But it was still a great trade for the Nuggets. And it may work out for the Knicks, too. But the Mavericks don't have somebody like that they can trade. So they'll have to use cap space to accrue talent. And the draft, since they'll be picking 13th, most likely, this summer. Finding a couple of good, young, hustling, workaholic players who can both average 15 points and grab rebounds and/or distribute the ball would be akin to finding one big fish. But it's never easy to locate those kinds of players. Even identifying them can be tough. The one thing I'd say is that the Mavericks still have the option of taking a chance on a risky player like Andrew Bynum or DeMarcus Cousins. Both have talent. And both have warts. Those kinds of players can work out great or they can go bust on you in a hurry. Let's trust the Mavericks for now to figure out whether either one of them is ready to become the superstar that their talent suggests they should be.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:02:43 PM

will watching the playoffs from home inspire mark Cuban to forget collecting cap space and one year rentals to actually get this team back to championship level?

by jason4/9/2013 4:02:47 PM

Probably not. He's pretty stubborn about believing that the plan he has in place will work, eventually. And this summer, as Dirk Nowitzki said in Tuesday's SportsDay, is huge for the franchise. Going one or two years without landing a key acquisition after detonating a title team is one thing. But it can't keep happening over and over again. Nowitzki has said he will help in the recruiting process this summer if it will help. And it will, by the way. So let's see what if they can find a take for that $15-million or so.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:04:51 PM

While listening to the crickets, I'll throw this scenario out for the dozens of you lurkers out there who don't want to ask questions: Would you like to see the Mavericks draft Dieng from Louisville? Assuming he comes out and hasn't played himself higher in the lottery. Guy is a pretty darn good passing big man and seems like the athletic body that could patrol the paint like Serge Ibaka. It's just a thought.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:07:34 PM

Eddie, knowing who are free agents this year, give us your best semi-realistic free agent plan that you would pursue going forward into this off-season. Thanks!

by Alan4/9/2013 4:10:11 PM

Let's assume for a moment that Utah holds on and gets into the playoffs ahead of the Lakers. The Mavericks absolutely have to take a big swing at Dwight Howard. Unless Howard or his agent tells them to not waste their time, you go for it. If you've watched the Lakers in the last month, Howard has been pretty much a beast. He's the best center in the league. Again. So you try to get him. Now, if the Lakers make the playoffs, things change. Howard might be more inclined to stay with the Lakers. In that case, you line up your money for players like Greivis Vasquez, who has developed into a big-time point guard and might be available even though he has one more year on his contract because the Hornets are going to have to develop Austin Rivers at some point. Or maybe you think Nikola Pekovic is worth building around. Or Josh Smith. Or, well, you get the idea. None of the names after Howard (and Chris Paul, who nobody expects to leave the Clippers) are nearly as enticing. As Mark Cuban has steadfastly said, it may be a sign-and-trade where the Mavericks take back a long-term contract of a young rising player like Marcin Gortat or the aforementioned Cousins. There will be options. They will require creativity and the Mavericks have always been pretty good at that.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:16:49 PM

Do you see any parallels between Bynum and Chandler at the same age?

by Dimunitive Dribbler4/9/2013 4:16:54 PM

Apart from Bynum being far superior from a pure offensive standpoint, yes, there are lots of parallels. Both have been injury prone. Both have been with franchises that have fell out of love with them. And both were immensely talented physical specimens, when healthy. The only variable is whether or not Bynum has the same fire burning in his gut that Chandler has had his whole career. That guy had drive and would work hard all the time. And he was a superstar in the locker room, too. We don't know if Bynum has those intangibles to capitalize on his unqestioned talent. But somebody's going to have to take a chance on him.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:19:07 PM

My new rooting focus for this year has now shifted from the Mavs, to beat the Heat. Who from the East would have the best chance of keeping them from the title game? Who from the West would have the best chance of beating them in a 7 game series?

by Alan4/9/2013 4:19:17 PM

I like it. If the Mavericks can't muster a playoff appearance, let's all try to use karma to take down the Heaters. And I think there could be a couple of very tough series for them in the East. Tyson Chandler knows how to beat Miami. He did it with the Mavericks a couple years ago. He would dominate the interior against the Heat. Also, Indiana is big enough with West and Hibbert to cause serious problems for the Heat. If Derrick Rose was healthy, the Bulls would be in the conversation, too. But you can't ask him to come back now and save the day after missing the whole season. In the West, I still say the Spurs, Lakers and Thunder, in that order, could give the Heat problems. Wouldn't beat them, but could give them problems.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:22:32 PM

Why do I get the feeling that Dwight Howard's best days are behind him and he's little more than a journeman in-waiting? Because I'm stupid?

by Dimunitive Dribbler4/9/2013 4:22:43 PM

Don't be so hard on yourself. I've been stupid most of my life and look where it's got me...OK, never mind about that. Howard is not a journeyman in waiting. He's still the best rebounder in the league, a good defensive player (great, still, at times) and if he makes more than half his free throws, his offensive potential goes up markedly. There are 29 teams who would take him.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:24:40 PM

What is the status of Jared Cunningham now and beyond this season. Will he contribute in some way or is he as disappointing as Roddy is the last two seasons? Will he be traded or get a chance with Dallas?

by Flip4/9/2013 4:24:44 PM

Can't imagine that he'd be traded now. His value is about as low as you can get, unless he is the final piece of a big trade. I was chatting with an Eastern Conference scout a while back and he asked why Cunningham can't get on the floor because when they were evaluating him, they thought he was a legitimate player who would be in somebody's rotation by the end of his rookie seaon. The injuries have hurt. He needs to get 100 percent healthy so he can show off some of that athleticism we've heard about. If he can do that, then he'll have a chance to crack the rotation next season.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:27:06 PM

Of all of our expiring contracts, which ones would you actively pursue to resign with longer contracts? Of those, what would you think it would take to resign them?

by Alan4/9/2013 4:27:11 PM

Given what we've seen during the good part of the season, Brandan Wright appears to me to be the guy you'd like to keep at a palatable number. If you can get him for something less than the mid-level exceptioin, then he's a bargain moving forward since it looks like his best days are ahead of him. Imagine if he were your backup at center and power forward and your center and power forward were Howard and Nowitzki. Or Pekovic and Nowitzki. Or Bynum and Nowitzki. Not bad, eh? After that, Mayo is the clear choice if you are going to spend north of the mid-level to keep any of these guys. If you could get him to agree to four years starting in the $6-7 million range...maybe four years for $30 mil or so. That would be sensible given the upside it appears Mayo has. Kaman is a goner, I'd say, and Collison wants something different (a starting role) than the Mavericks appear willing to offer. So cross him off. Brand would be great to keep around, but nobody would blame him if he tried to sign with a team a little closer to being championship material. As for Beaubois and Mike James, can't see either of them being a priority to keep.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:32:14 PM

Over/Under on Mav's draft position? I say 10th.

by Dimunitive Dribbler4/9/2013 4:32:44 PM

Take the over. They can't get any higher than 13th, unless their ping-pong ball comes up.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:33:46 PM

Now that the "Madness" is over and kids are starting to come out (or not come out) do you hear any rumblings on players who might, and how it could impact what is so-far, a pretty weak draft?

by Dimunitive Dribbler4/9/2013 4:33:50 PM

It's not going to be a pretty weak draft. It might be weak at the very top. But from three through 15, there are going to be a lot of similar-type of players. Just root for every sophomore and junior to come out that has a chance. The deeper it gets, the better it will be for the Mavericks.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:35:16 PM

Which of the last Mavs games this season are worth watching, considering I do have to stay awake all night (Mavs fan from europe)?

by Flip4/9/2013 4:35:44 PM

Actually, it would be worth staying up for the Phoenix game on Wednesday because, with a win, the beards get sheared off. You can bet the postgame video is going to be on Youtube in a hurry. After that, I'd always watch them play Denver anytime because the Nuggets are really good and would have been in the title conversation with Gallinari healthy.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:37:20 PM

As I said to my buddy Kev-Sherr the other day, considering the fact that the Mavs need a shooting (or point) guard rather than a skinny girl to (maybe?) play the 3, and they insist on looking at a woman hoopster, wouldn't it be better if they scouted Louisville's Shoni Shimmel instead of Brittny.

by Dimunitive Dribbler4/9/2013 4:37:51 PM

First of all, I won't hold it against you that your pals with Sherrington. Second, we are tabling all talk of Brittney Griner and women in the NBA until a drop-dead shooter who is over 6-feet tall comes along. Or until Mark Cuban says something silly again. Shawn Marion was talking in the locker room at Portland the other day and mentioned how a couple of elbows would send virtually any female (and a few men, too) into retirement.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:39:43 PM

Hi Eddie, looking at the (possible) free agents this summer I like the idea of getting Jarrett Jack and Andre Iguodala as starting guards. Add Collison and Carter to the mix and you have a pretty good guard rotation. Downside is not much money left for a decent bigman but something you can build around. Any chances for such a way or what are your thoughts?

by Flip4/9/2013 4:40:43 PM

I've always liked Jarrett Jack, but I question whether he can duplicate this season again. And I've never been a fan of Iguodala as your top two player. As stated above, Collison is not going to be back unless he alters his view of wanting to be a starter. So while your theory makes sense as a collective group, I don't see the parts landing here.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:42:17 PM

Having looked over the potential free agents on the market this coming offseason, and with your understanding of how much Markie Baby might spend, upcoming needs, desires of the players as far as location, which two or three of that list do you think the Mavs really have a chance of landing?

by Dimunitive Dribbler4/9/2013 4:42:31 PM

Howard, Al Jefferson and Pekovic. Maybe not in that exact order. But they got to get a big fellow. And the next target is a point guard like Vasquez (not a free agent) or Monta Ellis. Now there' a name. If he doesn't take his player option for next season ($11 mil), he could be a decent option.

by Eddie Sefko4/9/2013 4:44:42 PM

OK, everybody, thanks for the questions. We'll do it again next week when the Mavericks will be into serious draft-analyzing mode.